1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of structural separation mechanisms. More particularly, the present invention relates to the field of remotely controlled fasteners utilizing a segmented threaded nut for fast releasing of a threaded bolt.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Separation nuts are widely used in manufacturing and construction industries. The main purpose of utilizing separation nuts is to fasten threaded bolts in a quick releasible manner. Such separation nuts are traditionally known as "quick nuts". The following five (5) prior art patents were uncovered in the pertinent field of separation nuts:
1. U.S. Pat. No. 2,489,613 issued to Beswick on Nov. 29, 1949 for "Quick Action Nut" (hereafter "the Beswick Patent").
2. U.S. Pat. No. 2,576,579 issued to Donovan on Nov. 27, 1951 for "Cone Grip Lock Nut" (hereafter "the Donovan Patent").
3. U.S. Pat. No. 3,160,187 issued to Zahodiakin on Dec. 8, 1964 for "Quick Locking Fastener With Single Movable Jaw" (hereafter "the Zahodiakin Patent").
4. U.S. Pat. No. 4,875,266 issued to Batten on Oct. 24, 1989 for "Releasable High Torque Fastener" (hereafter "the Batten Patent").
5. U.S. Pat. No. 4,930,961 issued to Weis on Jun. 5, 1990 for "Quick Lock And Release Fastener" (hereafter "the Weis Patent").
The Batten Patent discloses an easily releasable fastener specially designed for high torque applications. The releasable fastener comprises a washer, a nut and a retaining ring. The nut has three threaded segments, all retained by the retaining ring. A threaded bolt can be threaded into the three-segmented nut, and the retaining ring acts to keep the fastener together as a unit. A retractor is provided for manually removing the retaining ring to release the bolt.
The Weis Patent discloses a quick lock and release fastener. The quick fastener comprises a split threaded nut operable within a drive plate and an operating head fixed with the drive plate. The split nut and the drive plate have a cam engagement for fastening or releasing a threaded bolt. A semi-circular compression spring is provided for facilitating the separation of the two segments of the split nut. The fastening or releasing of the split nut is controlled by the rotational movement of the drive plate.
The Beswick Patent discloses a quick action nut having a three-segment internal nut contained in a fixed housing. Each segment of the split nut is independently engaged with a spring biased pin. The segments of the spilt nut further have outer ribs which are engageable with the inner grooves of the housing. There is no retaining pin utilized.
The Donovan Patent discloses a quick grip lock nut utilizing a three-segmented nut adapted to secure the skin of airplane wings. The fastening or releasing of the segmented nut is controlled through spring members. No vertically moveable sleeve is utilized for controlling the fastening or releasing of the segmented nut.
The Zahodiakin Patent discloses a quick locking nut with a self-contained compression spring for biasing a movable clamping jaw. The clamping jaw is biased by a compression spring. The locking nut utilizes no segmented nut.
It can be seen that many prior art quick nuts have utilized a segmented threaded nut. Typically the segmented threaded nut includes three threaded segments. To retain a threaded element such as a threaded bolt, the threaded segments are tightened together by various means, including a circular sleeve, a cam disc, a biasing spring, etc. To release the threaded bolt, the threaded segments are loosened. Traditional separation nuts are often released by manual and local operations.
However, in many situations such as in aerospace applications, it is often required that the releasing of the separation nuts be remotely controlled. One type of separation nut used in the aerospace industry utilizes explosive initiators such as squibs for a remotely controlled release, and are known as "explosive separation nuts". However, in many aerospace apparatus such as satellites, it is highly desirable to employ separation nuts which utilize a non-explosive releasing mechanism because the separation nuts are located very close to highly sensitive electronic modules.
In addition to the requirement that the separation be performed in a non-explosive manner, the separation nuts used in aerospace applications must also satisfy other critical requirements. For example, the separation nuts often need to be very small (such as less than one inch long) and very lightweight (such as a few ounces), but must be able to tolerate a very high tensile load (such as up to ten thousand pounds). Therefore, it is highly desirable to have a very efficient and also very effective design and construction of a new non-explosive separation nut which can be used in various applications, particularly in the aerospace industry.